There's A Storm Coming
by Sheikah
Summary: Sephiroth’s back and he claims to be a new man. Cloud doesn’t believe him and makes it his mission to destroy him. The only obstacle in Cloud’s way is Rena, his sister. But Rena holds a secret.. [Rated T for minor violence and swearing]
1. Friends and Family

**Summary: **I had a dream, so I decided to put it in words… Sephiroth's back and he claims to be a new man. Cloud doesn't believe him and makes it his mission to destroy him. The only obstacle in Cloud's way is Rena, his sister. Rena has befriended Sephiroth and won't let Cloud kill him. But Rena has an amazing secret…

**Disclaimer: **Give me Final Fantasy... give it to me…

* * *

A holiday in Rena's home was always the same.

She didn't have a large family, but they were very noisy. And today was no different.

Rena's father sat at the head of the sizeable dining room table shouting at her cousins and being merry. His wife, Rena's stepmother, was buzzing around the dining room, supervising the festivities. And Rena herself was standing at the back of the room, smiling as she surveyed her family. She loved them so much. But with a frown, she glanced at the window.

Where was Sephiroth?

She had invited him over, but he was already twenty minutes late. Sighing, she went over to the window, staring at the landscape. Rena lived on the Wutai continent, in a small town in the cliffs, named Ocean Village. It was a fairly new town, founded by her father. Their house was on the tip of the highest cliff, and her father had fashioned a small ledge right out from the back door, so one could stand at the edge and take in the beauty of the mountains.

It also served as a landing platform for those who could fly. Namely, Sephiroth and Cloud.

Cloud.

He had had to work today, and – Rena realized – it would have been disastrous if he had come upon Sephiroth. Sighing again, she shook her head. Why couldn't Cloud realize that his former enemy really _had _changed? He was so stubborn. She supposed he never could forgive him for Aeris' death and all that had happened.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Rena called over the noise that she would get it, but no-one heard or cared anyway. Making her way to the front of the house, dodging children, she opened the massive oak door. And there, lo and behold, in all his glory, was Sephiroth.


	2. Sephiroth

She gave him a good look. His silver hair was as shiny and long as ever, but he was thin. Thinner than he had been when he had returned. Clothed in his classic outfit, he gave Rena a smile and embraced her.

'Renata… sorry I was late. I was… held up,' he explained in his whispery, soft yet deep voice. Rena sighed, exasperated.

'How many times have I told you to call me Rena, now? And never mind the lateness, I understand,' she nodded.

Sephiroth smiled again and Rena stepped aside so he could come in. He surveyed her house, her mansion, with a blank face. Rena watched him closely, but he had no expression. Finally, he looked at her. 'You have a beautiful house, Rena.' He seemed to pronounce her nickname with difficulty.

'Come this way, and you can meet my family,' she said, leading him down the hallway. Passing a giant gilded mirror, she took a quick glance at herself. Rena could best be explained as dull. Her hair was a faded brown and short, just reaching her shoulders. It was curly, and it seemed out of place, like it was a wig. Her eyes were grey and lifeless and also seemed out of place. Pale skinned and slender, Rena stuck to uninteresting colours and clothes. She had been told many times that she looked like someone she shouldn't be.

It was hard to explain, they would say. Nevertheless, Rena seemed to charm every person she met, and thusly had many friends. Smiling wryly, she looked away from the mirror and continued to walk into the dining room. Upon crossing the doorway, she squeaked and grabbed Sephiroth's arm and yanked him down. Instantly, images flashed across her mind, images of Jenova and Nibelheim, of battles, and Sephiroth and Cloud. Gasping in pain, Rena closed her eyes and waited for the pictures to pass.

It happened everytime she touched Sephiroth, she was used to it. When she had told him about it, he was instantly worried she had caught some remnant of Geostigma, but when no marks appeared on her body, and since it only happened when she touched him, they had discarded the idea. As a result, Sephiroth refrained from touching Rena as much as possible.

However, at times like these, it was unavoidable.

Rena looked up just as the knife flew over Sephiroth and her head. Rena supposed that her father had gotten into a heated argument with her uncle, _again_, and gotten a little hostile.The dining room was deathly silent for a moment as everyone turned to stare at the duo. Rena stood up weakly, shaking the last of the pain from her mind. Sephiroth did the same.

'Um, everyone… this is my friend Sephiroth,' she said feebly.


	3. Here Comes Cloud

Despite still being wary of the man who had almost destroyed their world, Rena's family seemed to sense that he was different also. Plus, their daughter, who had always seen into the hearts of people, seemed to trust him, and that meant more to them then anything.

Sephiroth was welcomed into the room and thrust into a seat where a plate filled with food was shoved in front of him. Everybody started talking at once and despite being friendly and polite, Sephiroth couldn't keep the overwhelmed expression off his face. Rena sat next to him, silently laughing.

* * *

A little while later, when all her family members had returned to their homes all over the world, Sephiroth and Rena retired to the quiet garden off the side of the house to talk. Overlooking the very edge of the cliffs and then the ocean, it was a beautiful setting and very relaxing.

Rena stretched out amongst the grass and thought about the past month.

Sephiroth had turned up in Edge a year after the events of Geostigma. He had stumbled out of an abandoned warehouse, where bystanders had been sent wild and running in all directions. Soon Rufus Shinra had been notified of the incident, and had sent the Turks to restrain and bring Sephiroth to him.

Sephiroth had made no attempt to free himself or injure anyone, and was silent the whole way to Healin Lodge, where Rufus was situated. Top scientists and psychologists had questioned Sephiroth about what had happened, but he had simply shrugged and said he didn't know; only that he didn't hate anything anymore.

He was kept in the Lodge for a week before Rufus let him go, but assigned Reno and Rude to keep a close eye on him. They had been doing so for the past three weeks, but had reported to Rufus that there had been no suspicious behaviour at all. In fact, all Sephiroth had been doing was sitting in his house, occasionally going out to see Rena or Rufus.

And on the handful of occasions Cloud had seen Sephiroth, the tension was so thick that you could cut it. However, the silver-haired man had made no hostile or unfriendly attempts at all – he had been as expressionless and polite as ever. Cloud, on the other hand, had to be restrained by five people, and even then kept yelling at Sephiroth until Rena clamped him up, eyes sparkling dangerously.

Rena's thoughts returned to the present. Sighing, she rolled over and looked at Sephiroth. To her surprise and horror, he was doubled over in pain, clutching his stomach, eyes squeezed tight. Rena gasped and looked towards the back of the house. Uh-oh…

Racing for the door back into the house, she yanked it open and dashed through the house until she reached the back door. Bracing herself, she opened it, and sure enough, there was Cloud.


	4. I Don't Care Anymore

Not just Cloud. Angry Cloud. Irate Cloud. Furious Cloud. He attempted to push past Rena but she wouldn't allow it. Despite only reaching his chin, Rena managed to not let him into the house straight away. He was looking past her, lost in his thoughts and memories, until she reached up and pinched his arm.

'Ow!' he cried, his mind finally turning to the only obstacle in his way. 'Rena, get out of my way, _now_. Why is he here? How dare you invite him into our house?' His eyes sparkled with indignation. Smiling grimly, Rena answered, 'Well, it's not like you live here anyway. If you don't like it, why don't you run back to Tifa and cry into her arms!'

'Don't you change the subject! I'm coming to get him!' said Cloud. Rena sighed and slammed the door in his face, before locking and double-locking it. Leaving him banging on it like a maniac, she ran back through the house to the garden where Sephiroth stood, looking at her worriedly.

The pain had obviously faded, but beads of sweat still ran down his forehead. Rena was glad that Cloud didn't feel the same pain when Sephiroth was coming.

'You… you have to go.' Rena looked down, red with shame. Sephiroth looked away.

'We can't keep on like this, Renata,' he answered, still not looking at her. 'Sooner or later something is going to happen and it probably won't end happily.'

'Well, it's not going to happen in my home,' Rena said. She walked to the door to the house and held it open. 'I'm sorry.'

Sephiroth sighed, and walked past her without a word. Moments later she heard the front door close. Rena re-entered the house and made her way slowly to the back door. Cloud was still pounding away like a madman. Yanking the door open – and dodging a fist – she glared at her brother.

'I hope you're happy, Mr. I-can't-accept-my-enemy-isn't-evil-anymore! I don't care what you think anymore, Cloud! Why won't you listen to what I'm saying? If you still need to let it out, _talk to him_. You need to know for yourself how he really is! And you won't be able to do that if you're too busy rearranging his face!

'It's time to let it go. It's been three years… I know you've made your peace with Aeris' death, and I understand you'll never be able to forgive him for what he did. He knows that too! But he's not the same man he was back then. I'm not asking you to be best friends, Cloud, I'm just asking you to accept him as a person!' cried Rena.

Cloud looked at his sister for what seemed like eternity. Then, with an odd look, he spoke up. 'Come with me. Come to Edge, and stay with Tifa and I for a while. You need to get away from here for awhile… and…' he trailed off.

'Sephiroth lives in Edge, too. It'd be… easier.'


	5. The Past

After reluctantly agreeing and packing a bag, Rena stood on the flattest cliff top of the Wutai continent, waiting for the Sierra to pick her up. Cloud had already flown off. _Where had he picked up that ability again? Probably some weird Materia or something… _she thought.

She was awoken from her thoughts by a thunderous whirring, and looked up to see the massive airship descending from the sky. As soon as she hopped on, she was warmly welcomed by Cid and Tifa. Enthusiastically returning a hug from Cid, she turned to Tifa.

For some reason, Rena had always been a little wary of Tifa. For the life of her, she couldn't figure out why. Maybe it was because she somehow felt Tifa had taken Aeris' place. Before her death, in the short time they had known each other; Aeris and Rena had become close friends. Rena had loved the fact that Cloud and Aeris adored each other.

But then Aeris had died. And although Tifa had made no move to replace Aeris, it was clear to see that she felt affectionate towards Cloud. After Geostigma, Cloud had finally let go of his loneliness and become the serious, kind-hearted and content brother Rena had used to know. But now Sephiroth was back, and Cloud had gone into killing-machine mode again.

Rena reached over to Tifa and gave her a quick, polite hug. As she pulled away, she noticed a split-second hurt in Tifa's eyes, before being instantly replaced with happiness. Sighing, Rena cursed herself. All Tifa wanted was acceptance and friendship, but Rena could simply not bring herself to grant them.

* * *

The flight to Edge was not long, and Rena found herself staring out of the window for the most part. There was Nibelheim, where Cloud and their mother had used to live. A year after Cloud was born; Rena was born and sent to Wutai with her father after the two parents separated. There, he had made a living by collecting and selling Materia, and, as a result, had made a fortune and formed his own village south of Wutai.

Rena and Cloud had only been reunited when Cloud had come to Midgar, after Zack's death. Rena – who had been visiting a relative – had recognized her brother, through methods she could not explain, and learnt of their mother's death and everything that had happened. But when she, like Cloud, went to investigate Nibelheim, none of the locals knew anything about Sephiroth or the fire.

Trusting Cloud, she visited from time to time, becoming increasingly worried with her big brother's safety, and his emotional wellbeing. He seemed to believe that their father was dead, and he had been a member of SOLDIER. Rena knew both were untrue, but sensed she should not tell him just yet.

When Cloud fell into the Lifestream, Yuffie contacted Rena, and the girl went straight to Mideel to see her brother. Horrified by his state, she made sure Tifa would look after him and returned to Ocean Village. Some time later, Yuffie once again sought out Rena and told her of Cloud's recovery.

Cloud finally seemed to realize the truth about his past, and this made Rena so happy she cried. Then he had gone on to do everything he needed to do, and Rena kept her distance. She was no fighter, and could not help him. After the events in the Northern Crater, Cloud had returned to Ocean Village to tell his family he was living in Edge with two friends.

Rena was happy he had found his life, but wished that she saw him more. Sighing, Rena moved away from the glass. Nibelheim was in the past now. But Sephiroth had killed her mother and her friend – why did she still trust him? Why didn't she act as Cloud did? It was what made her so angry at Cloud. Rena felt like she should be doing the same, but she didn't. Couldn't. Wouldn't?


	6. Return

Once the Sierra had landed in Edge, Cloud took Rena around his home. She had met Marlene before, but not Denzel. There was something about the child… she couldn't put her finger on it. He was special, she knew that. Rena's senses always seemed more advanced than anyone else's. People thought it was constant exposure to Materia from a young age.

Cloud had asked Rena to help out in the tavern. She agreed, and refused any pay whatsoever. After introductions and everything had been concluded, Cloud sat Rena down in his small living room.

'Rena… how did you come to be friends with… him?' he asked her nervously.

'Hmm. Let's see,' Rena thought for a moment.

'I was in Edge on a Materia deal for Father. Some really mysterious client, he wouldn't let me see his face. Quite creepy, really. Anyway, the office where the client worked was three doors down from the warehouse that Sephiroth emerged from.

'I was just coming out of the office after the deal, when someone screamed and I was knocked over. When I got up, people were running in all directions. I pushed through to see the source of the commotion, and that's where I saw him. My first instinct was surprise, and then curiosity–' Rena was cut short as Cloud interrupted.

'You see the man who killed your mother and best friend is standing unarmed in the middle of a city, and you don't feel anger or rage?' he asked incredulously. Rena smiled and shook her head.

'Nope. I don't know, I just didn't. Let me go on. He was just standing there, looking bewildered, so I approached him. He seemed to recognize me, although we had never met. I asked him what he was doing here, and wasn't he dead? He only shrugged and asked me where he was.

'I told him this was Edge, a new city just out of Midgar. By this time, havoc was being wreaked amongst the civilians, and I figured something bad would happen sooner or later. Some crazed AVALANCE fan or something. Or you.

'I called Rufus and told him to send someone quickly. I was sure he didn't believe me, but he knew I was your sister so he figured I must be telling the truth. Sure enough, in just a couple of minutes, there was the Shinra helicopter and the Turks.

'Reno took me aside and asked me if I was alright. He was acting all funny, but I was getting impatient so I brushed him aside and went up to Tseng. He had the same kind of infuriated gleam in his eye as you do whenever you see Sephiroth, so Rude was keeping a close watch on him.

'Elena was talking quietly to Sephiroth and holding a gun to his back as she led him to the helicopter. He seemed quite attentive and pleasant, actually. I asked Tseng what would happen to him, but Tseng seemed to have trouble talking so Reno told me that they would just run some experiments and things like that on him to start with.

'Just before Sephiroth entered the helicopter, he looked back and smiled at me, stating that he would like to see me again. I told him it may happen. A few days after that I visited Healin to see how he was doing, and we got to talking.

'I realized that he had definitely changed and we discussed everything that had happened since Nibelheim. After that, I don't know… I guess we just became friends,' explained Rena.


	7. A Letter

Cloud took a few moments to take in all this information.

'You really do believe he's changed, don't you?' he asked her softly. His bright blue eyes stared at her intently. Rena stared right back at him.

'I know he has.'

'Then I'll give him one chance just for you, Rena. But if he turns out to be the same Sephiroth as ever, I will kill him.' His voice remained as soft as ever, and it frightened Rena. 'If I'm wrong, brother, then we'll kill him together. But don't count on it!' whispered the young woman.

* * *

Rena had brought rare and prized Materia with her. They were her favourite pieces, and she always took them with her. Some of this Materia even Cloud had not seen before. When Rena first dumped the big bag on the kitchen table, Cloud was bewildered. Every kind of Materia seemed to be accounted for. If there was a battle, they would be well equipped.

Tifa secretly disapproved of the Materia. She didn't like the idea of more fighting and felt like Rena was encouraging it. She didn't understand that Materia was part of Rena's life, and that was why the raven-haired woman had never been able to get close to Yuffie. Tifa figured the two got along well.

That night Rena began working as a barmaid. At first she didn't take the job seriously, but after meeting some of the interesting characters that wandered into Seventh Heaven, she began to work a little harder. She charmed most of the customers with her friendly manner and sense of humour, something Tifa didn't have time for.

A couple of nights after moving in with Cloud, Rena got a letter from Sephiroth:

_My dear Renata,_

_I feel terrible after what happened at your home a few days ago. Please, would you do me the honour of visiting me? I would have asked you in person, but when I went to Ocean Village, I was informed you had moved in with your brother. I thought it better if I didn't show up. Nevertheless, I will be waiting for you tomorrow at 6 pm, if you can make it. _

_Yours sincerely,_

_Sephiroth._


	8. The Turks Interfere

Rena told Cloud that she'd be taking tomorrow night off to visit Sephiroth. Cloud gritted his teeth but nodded. After their truce, Cloud knew better than to try and stop her. So the next evening, Rena took a taxi to Sephiroth's new home.

It was a small but tidy apartment quite close to the warehouse where he had reappeared. 'I feel like I should stay close to that place,' he had told her. 'I feel like if I stray too far, I'll be leaving a part of me behind.'

When she rang the doorbell, a tall man opened the door immediately. It was dark, and his back was to the light, so Rena could only see his silhouette. It wasn't Sephiroth. The man took a few steps back until his face was flooded with light. It was Rude.

'Oh… hello, Rude. I had no idea that by watching Sephiroth you were actually living in the same house. A bit conspicuous, don't you think?' smiled Rena Rude shook his head. 'We won't be staying,' said the Turk. With that, he stepped aside so the woman could enter.

As she entered the living room, Reno got up from his chair lazily to greet her.

'Hello, Rena. How are you?' he asked, winking at her. Rena laughed. 'I'm fine, thank you, Reno. Still as playful as ever, I see,' she answered with a smile. Reno smiled back and sat down again. 'Of course!' he exclaimed.

Sephiroth entered the room. 'Ah, Rena, you've arrived. Don't worry, we wont be spending the evening in such a cramped space,' he commented pleasantly. 'Reno and Rude here are just leaving. You and I will be taking a little excursion!'

Reno glanced at Rude and spoke up, 'Actually, we were assigned to escort you wherever you guys were going. Believe me, I'd rather not be doing it either, but you know, boss' orders.' Rude nodded. Sephiroth stared at Reno for a moment.

Then with a smile, he exclaimed, 'Of course! We can all go!' With that, he motioned for everyone to follow him as he walked out the door. Rude took a quick look back at Reno before going after Sephiroth. As Rena made a move to follow, Reno touched her arm.

'It's not escorting we've been sent to do, you know. Rufus… Rufus doesn't want Sephiroth getting too close to anyone. I'm not sure what his plans are, but… we've been sent to interfere with the situation. I'm sorry, but you can't be around Sephiroth anymore, Rena.' His eyes were apologetic.

It took a moment to realize what he was saying.

'No.'


	9. A Terrible Proposal

Reno stared at her, puzzled.

'No?' he repeated. 'It isn't a choice, Rena. We're taking him back to Healin, and we're doing it tonight. Are you going to try and stop us? I'd hate to have to hurt you.' With that, Reno tightened his grip on Rena's arm.

Slowly, Rena looked down at Reno's pale hand on her skin. Even slower, she looked back up into his eyes. 'Let go of me, Reno,' she said delicately. Reno smiled wryly. 'Not so fast, princess. I have a feeling you're going to try and stop us…'

He did it so fast that Rena had her back pressed up to Reno's chest and her arms behind her before she knew what happened. Struggling, she realized she was being held tight. 'We can't have that, Rena,' he leaned down and whispered in her ear.

Unfortunately, at that moment, Sephiroth had chosen to look back into the living room. Needless to say, he wasn't happy with the scene in front of him.

'Reno,' he said icily. 'Why are you holding my friend like that?' Sephiroth's eyes bore into Reno's.

'Sorry, Seph, but she's not your friend anymore,' said the redhead. With that, he twisted Rena round so that her front was against him this time. 'Time to go,' he said. Then everything erupted into action. Reno shoved Rena so powerfully she fell to the floor, out of the way. Rude had come back in and punched Sephiroth in the back of the head. Reno withdrew a knife from his belt and put it underneath Sephiroth's throat.

'We're taking you back to Healin,' he informed Sephiroth, who had just recovered from the blow and was eyeing the knife. Rena looked up just as Sephiroth smiled oddly. She knew that smile. Who had she seen with that smile before?

With a twist, the knife was sent flying. It flew towards Rena. She ducked and closed her eyes as bangs, thuds and grunts sounded around her. Moments later, she opened one eye. Then the other. The two Turks were lying sprawled on the floor. Rude appeared to be unconscious, whilst Reno was lying on his back with his head tilted up, a look of horror on his face.

And Sephiroth… Sephiroth had Masamune poised in the air, about to strike down.

'No!' screamed Rena, jumping to her feet. Sephiroth glanced at her, a wild look in his eyes for a moment. Then he stood up straight and immediately lowered the sword. 'Rena, don't worry, I wasn't going to kill him, I was just scaring him a little,' Sephiroth smiled and took a step towards her. Rena held up her hands, staring at the long sword.

'You told me you didn't have that sword anymore, Sephiroth,' she reminded him, glancing at his face. He was staring at her, trying to read her. 'You told me that it was left behind wherever you came from,' she whispered.

'Well, I lied, alright?' he snapped. Rena jumped, suddenly afraid. 'Ever since I came here, everyone's blaming me for everything, and I don't even remember doing it! It's not fair, no-ones believes me, except you! But if I had told you or anyone I still had my sword, oh, I'd be locked up or killed before I'd known what had hit me!'

He took a deep breath. 'I'm not here to hurt anyone, Rena. I know you believe that. But I can't stay here anymore. One of the scientists at Shinra developed a spacecraft. I know where it is and how to operate it. Come with me, Rena, and we'll find a new world. I know there are more out there.'


	10. Time To Leave Here

**A/N:** If you're finding it hard to discern the dialogue between Ren**a **and Ren**o**, just bear with me!

* * *

_Half and hour later…_

'He asked you to do WHAT?!'

Rena had raced out of Sephiroth's apartment. She had hailed the nearest taxi back to the bar and had proceeded to sit on the couch in silence until Cloud came in.

'How was your visit?' he asked her. When she didn't answer, he looked at her, concerned. 'Rena, are you alright?' She looked up.

'He, uh, he asked me to go to another planet with him.'

And so now the two siblings were staring at each other, in Cloud's small living room.

'Asked me to live with him on another planet,' Rena repeated. 'Reno and Rude had been sent to take him back to Healin, and…' she trailed off. Rena was about to say what had happened with the sword and everything, but thought better of it. It would only get Cloud angrier.

'…and he wouldn't let them,' she finished. Looking away from her brothers piercing blue eyes, she said quietly, 'I'm worried about him now, Cloud. I'm afraid he might do something stupid. And I'm afraid I might be involved with it. His determination has lessened none since the return, and if he wants me to come with him, I think he might do anything to make it happen.

'Cloud, you have to promise you won't make any sort of communication with Sephiroth, _at all_. As much as I wanted you two to talk it over, I fear that if that happened now… there's something different about him.'

Cloud stood for a moment, before kneeling in front of Rena and taking her small hands in his large ones. 'Rena, he wont get you, don't worry. But if he tries something stupid, I'm not going to hold back. If it's where your safety is concerned, I'll not stay friendly.'

Tears filled Rena's colourless eyes. 'I understand. And I… I'm not going to stay here with you. I don't want to put the children or Tifa in any harm. And I'm not going back to Ocean Village again, either. I'm going to Cosmo Canyon for a while. It's a safe place, and close to the Ancient Forest. That forest is full of Materia.

'I'm sorry, Cloud. I need time to think. And I'm going to need to protect myself from Sephiroth. I know he won't hurt me, though. Keep that in mind.'

And with that, the small brunette left the room. A few minutes later she reappeared with her bags. Kissing Cloud on the cheek, she murmured in his ear, 'I love you, brother. I'll stay in touch.'


	11. The Damage Is Done

_Two weeks later…_

'Yes, Cloud. Yes, I know. No, I haven't seen him. I'm doing fine. Yes. Yes, brother. Okay. Say hi to Tifa and the kids for me. Love you too. Bye!' Rena put the mobile phone back in her pocket as she stretched out on the cliff where Bugenhagen used to live. Rena had been staying in the vacant home with the permission of Red XIII, and it had been fantastic. The woman had been looking through all of his notes on the Planet and Materia, and was learning more than ever.

Sephiroth had made no move to contact her, and she wondered about him often. Maybe she should go visit him again? She knew he would make no physical attempt on her, so what was the harm? And first she'd stop off at Healin Lodge to make sure the two Turks were okay.

She felt awful about leaving them with Sephiroth and his sword. Who knows what might've happened?

So the next day, Rena showed up at the Lodge. Elena opened the door for her, surprised at her appearance.

'Rena! What a shock! I haven't seen you since Sephiroth returned. How are you?' the blonde woman smiled widely. 'I'm fine, Elena. Are Reno and Rude here?' asked Rena. Elena's face fell. 'Um, you'd better come with me…'

Elena took Rena down a few hallways and corridors until they came to a door marked _'Medical/Science Laboratory'_. Elena looked apologetically at Rena. 'I'll wait out here for you,' she said gently. Rena frowned and opened the door.

There were about ten beds here, in a hospital-looking room. Off on one side were some long tables with all kinds of apparatus and machines around them. A door at the back of the room no doubt led to a larger laboratory.

And on one of the beds lay Reno.

He was unconscious, with a blanket over him. But his hands and face were visible. Thick bandages covered his pale hands, whilst his peaceful face was littered with tiny but deep cuts and scars. It looked like he had fallen into a pit of thorns. Horrified with his appearance, she rushed to his side.

'Not pretty, is it?' rumbled a deep voice from behind her. Rude came to stand next to Rena. He had a bruise on his cheek and a long gash from ear to collarbone. 'The nurse said that most of the cuts would heal up, but some of the deepest ones would stay with him. You're lucky you can't see his hands.'

Rena swallowed. 'His hands?' she whispered. Rude shook his head. 'The sword almost went right through them. Both of them. They'll heal, but… the nurse said they'll never stop hurting.'

Rena looked at the Turk in horror. 'He'll be in pain the rest of his life?' she cried. Rude didn't say anything. They stood looking at Reno for a little while, until Rude spoke up. 'Sephiroth… he made it quite clear he wasn't going to kill us. I was unconscious for the most part, so he didn't bother with me. But Reno kept getting up and attempting to fight him. So Sephiroth decided to decorate his face a little. I only woke up near the end. That damn sword was moving so fast that Reno was bleeding before he could take another breath.'


	12. Talking With Reno

Rena continued to stare at Reno.

'Is he in a coma?' she asked Rude. The tall man shook his head.

'No, he's only asleep. Actually, look, I think he's waking now,' commented Rude.

It was true, Reno's body was moving underneath the blanket. His eyelids fluttered for a moment before opening. The redhead groaned, cradling his injured hands to his chest. 'Rena… I'd prefer if you didn't see me in this state…' he rasped.

Cloud's sister smiled sadly. 'Oh, Reno,' she said, tears filling her eyes again. 'I'm so sorry. I should have stayed and helped.' He tried to smile at her, but the cuts on his face made it too painful. 'Don't blame yourself for what happened. It could have been a lot worse. Hey, we could be dead.'

Reno's eyes flicked to Rude, and hissed when he saw the scar and bruise. 'Ah, too bad, man. I'm sorry I couldn't have held out longer for you,' apologized the Turk. Rude gave the tiniest smile. 'You got it a lot worse than I did,' he answered.

Something started beeping and Rude reached for his mobile phone. He excused himself and left the room. Reno looked up at the woman in front of him. 'He said he wouldn't hurt us, Rena. You heard him. He said he wouldn't hurt anyone. Another lie. Are you going to _leave the planet _with him?' the pale man said scornfully.

Rena blushed. 'I don't know; he wasn't like this before. Now he's revealed all these lies, and he's hurting people… perhaps Cloud was right. I don't want to believe it, but I feel I must. All my life, I've been right about the nature of people. And now he's blinded me so convincingly…' She looked away. Reno attempted to put his hand on her arm, but couldn't.

Wincing, he said, 'Even if we're the very best at something, there's always someone who brings us down. As much as I hate to say it… there may be hope for Sephiroth yet. Don't lose all faith. If he does turn out to be the same Sephiroth… you've always got me and Rude and Chocobo-head looking out for you.'

In spite of herself, Rena laughed. 'Don't let him catch you calling him that!' she exclaimed. The two stayed in silence for a while, just enjoying each other's company. After a little while, Rena told the Turk she had to leave, and promised she would visit him again.

* * *

After a short journey, she arrived back at Sephiroth's apartment. By now, the sun was just setting, and lights were visible from his windows. Taking a deep breath, she once again rang the doorbell. A few minutes later, the door opened and there was Sephiroth.

His face lit up when he saw her. 'Rena… come in,' he said, stepping out of the way. Rena took a good look at his face, but saw no hostility or mystery or anything like that. Squaring her small shoulders, she walked into the apartment as the door closed behind her.


	13. Nature Revealed

Instantly, there was a flash and Rena found herself stumbling into a white void. Soft music was playing, and in front of her stood Aeris. Gasping, Rena moved forward to hug her former friend but Aeris took a step back, smiling.

'Hello, Rena. I see you are doing well,' she said. Her voice was as soft and kind as ever. 'Why have you made contact with me?' asked Rena, taking a good look at her brother's lover. Aeris tilted her head, smiling patronizingly. 'Why do you think, Rena?' she asked.

The younger woman thought for a moment. Aeris wouldn't have communicated with Rena if it hadn't been important. Perhaps coming here was a mistake. 'Is he going to hurt me?' she asked Aeris. The Ancient chuckled. 'Hurt you? Why, we wouldn't want that! Are you prepared?'

The scene disappeared and Rena found herself back in Sephiroth's hallway. He was smiling at her brightly. 'I'm glad you came back, I was afraid I'd have to come after you!' he exclaimed. Rena managed a smile and walked into the living room. She immediately noticed a rug on the floor, exactly on the spot where Reno and Rude had lay on that day, weeks ago.

'Have you seen those Turks since we last met?' he asked her, watching her face. Rena turned to look at him.

'No.'

Studying her eyes, Sephiroth finally nodded and spoke, 'Alright, if you say so.'

Rena sat down, and Sephiroth followed suit.

'Rena, have you considered my proposal? Rufus has sent no more people to come capture me, but it won't be long before he does. I'm afraid I can't stay much longer. I very much hope you have agreed to it.'

The woman sighed. 'You knew when you asked me that I would not agree,' she whispered. For a split-second, Sephiroth's smiling face twitched into an ugly mask of anger, before he regained his composure and smiled once more. 'Ah, that's too bad,' he said quietly, looking down.

Rena sighed again, this time in relief. It looked like he would not try anything after all. But to her dismay, she was wrong.

Moving faster than the eye could see, Sephiroth had Rena pinned to the wall. Bracing herself for the effect he had on her when he touched her, she squeezed her eyes shut. But it didn't come. Looking at his hands, Rena saw he was wearing gloves. 'You were right,' he rasped in her face. 'I knew you would not agree. But I have catered for that decision. I'm afraid it wasn't really an option, Rena. I should have made that more clear.

'I know what you're thinking now. Despite the fact you don't want to come with me, I know that in the future you will come to embrace the life I will lay out for us. Who knows, maybe you will come to love me as I love you…' Sephiroth leaned down and kissed Rena, softly, before pulling away and searching for emotion in her eyes.


	14. Kidnapped

Many thoughts were running through Rena's head at that moment.

He loved her? That would explain a lot. And why hadn't the images flashed through her mind when he kissed her? Realizing she had to say something, Rena stumbled over words.

'I… I'm sorry, Sephiroth, but I can't leave the planet with you. Please let me go,' was all she could manage. Sephiroth's hands had begun to tremble, sending vibrations up Rena's arms. 'Rena, I won't leave here without you. I'm sorry, my love,' he murmured. And with those words, Sephiroth raised a glowing hand, and Rena's world went black.

* * *

The woman woke sometime later, to find herself lying on a bed. The walls around her were grey and metallic, and the room itself was not much bigger than a car. Struggling to get up, Rena found herself laggy and feeling heavy.

She opened the door and gasped. She was at the back of a large room, filled with controls and lights and machinery. She was in the spacecraft Sephiroth had spoke of. And he himself stood at the front of the room, looking out the window.

To Rena's relief, they were still on the planet. To her left were two double doors, no doubt leading to a hallway and then hopefully the exit. Being as quiet as possible, Rena tiptoed towards the door. She was almost there, when a clear voice rang out.

'I see you've awoken.'

Rena froze. Turning around slowly, she glared at the man who had kidnapped her. 'Sephiroth. I was just leaving.' She crossed her arms. Sephiroth chuckled. 'Now, now… you know you can't do that!' he exclaimed.

Rena was about to reply when there was a loud thud behind her. She spun around to see the source of the noise, but there was nothing there. Another thud sounded, this time to the right of her. But there still wasn't anything there. It must've been coming from outside the ship.

Luckily, Sephiroth didn't hear the sounds. Rena glanced furtively around one last time, before another, louder thud sounded and she immediately hit the deck, falling to the floor. Sephiroth started forward to see why she had chosen to lie on the ground, when the wall to Rena's right burst open, leaving a smoking metal hole.

In the midst of the explosion, stood Cloud, sword unsheathed. He rushed over to Rena. 'Are you okay?' he asked worriedly. Rena nodded and pointed to Sephiroth. The silver-haired man was on his knees, a small gash on his left cheek. He stood up slowly and faced Cloud.

'Cloud… nice of you to drop in.'


	15. Swordplay

Sephiroth stepped back a few steps to a row of shelves. From the top shelf he extracted Masamune. The two men faced off, circling each other as Rena looked on. Cloud was the first to strike. The ring of metal on metal echoed throughout the room.

The pair of ex-SOLDIERS struck and parried all over the room, jumping and dodging each other. Rena struggled to her feet and ducked back into the room she had been sleeping in, closing the door.

Neither man noticed her departure. Sephiroth saw a hole in Cloud's defense, and slashed across Cloud's chest. It went through the clothing and left a shallow cut from his shoulder to his waist. Cloud immediately retaliated by leaving a gash on Sephiroth's arm.

They carried on like this for a good ten minutes, before each began to stagger with exhaustion. More moments passed, and they were close to collapsing. 'Cl… Cloud…' panted the taller man. Cloud didn't reply. He had fallen to his knees.

Sephiroth fell back onto a chair behind him. The two rested for a moment. 'Why do you want my sister?' asked Cloud. Sephiroth smiled tiredly. 'Haven't you guessed? I'm in love with her,' he said. The blonde man snorted. 'And as a display of your utter affection, you're taking her away from her friends and family?' he asked.

'She will learn to live without them, as I have all my life,' replied Sephiroth. Cloud sighed. 'You just don't get it, do you? She isn't like you! Hell, she doesn't even love you back! You can't just carry her off and hope for the best!' he cried.

'Cloud… I love her too much to go without her. And I can't stay here, I can't. Don't you understand?' asked Sephiroth. Cloud shook his head stubbornly. 'No, I don't,' he answered.

Their argument was interrupted by the sound of a door opening. Rena stood there, peering out nervously. 'Cloud? Are you okay?' she called. Sephiroth replied, his voice sounding injured. 'Over here,' he replied.

Rena raced over to her brother, examining the cut on his chest, and talking to him quietly. Sephiroth watched with envy. He stood up and approached the woman. 'Rena…' he began. Rena got to her feet and faced the two men, anger plain on her face.

'What do you two think you're doing? You could have both died! Typical men, resorting to fighting to solve all your problems. At the first sign of trouble, all you do is whip out your swords and hope that slicing someone up will make everything happy again! Hello? Do you two even think?' she cried.

Both men were blushing.

Rena looked away. 'I think it's time I told you both something – especially you, Cloud. The only other people in the world who know this about me are my father and Aeris. Yes, Aeris,' she repeated at Cloud's surprised look.

'You didn't know I existed for twenty years, Cloud. A lot can happen in twenty years…'


	16. Rena's Secret

'Rena,' began both men. They glared at each other. Rena held up her hand. 'Don't speak,' she said. 'I need to tell you this now. Or rather… show you.'

Pinpoints of white light began to rise up from the floor beneath Rena, growing larger and larger, until the woman was completely shielded from view. The room began to shake, as if a small earthquake had begun. The light was growing brighter and brighter. Suddenly it climaxed, forcing Cloud and Sephiroth to shield their eyes.

When the light faded, Rena was standing there. But she was not the same. Not at all.

Where her brown curly hair had once been, there was shiny, copper-coloured, straight tresses. Her skinny frame was now curvier and more womanly. Her pasty skin had darkened a little and almost glowed. But the thing that had changed the most was those lifeless eyes. They were now as vividly blue as Cloud's. Too vivid. They were Mako eyes.

In the place of her boring clothes was an elaborate fighting costume. The top was a bright blue singlet, with patterns of silver flowers on it. She wore a white miniskirt, and had black boots on. Black gloves covered her hands to her elbows. And to top all that off, she was carrying two short, thin swords in her hands.

The men almost fainted with shock, but neither could keep from staring at Rena's eyes. It had both dawned on them. Rena realized what they were thinking and smiled.

'Rena Strife, SOLDIER, first class.'

Cloud choked. 'You… you were SOLDIER?' he squeaked. Sephiroth was as shocked. 'How come we never saw you?' he whispered. 'I was SOLDIER for years and I never once saw or heard of you!'

'I had undergone special training. I was the first woman to be considered for the rank of SOLDIER. Shinra didn't want anyone else to know, in case the experiment went awry. They infused me with more Mako then they did the men – even you, Cloud. But, like everything else, it went wrong, and I nearly died.

'My body took it and they promoted me to first class. However, I hated myself for what I was now, and as a consequence, took on the image of a dull-looking young woman. Although, after I befriended Aeris, she helped me through all that had happened and I embraced my status.

'Unfortunately, it was too late to show my true colours, and I thought it best to keep hiding. Occasionally, Shinra contacted me for missions and such, but I always worked alone. When you told me you were SOLDIER, Cloud – even though you weren't – I was so excited, thinking that I could finally reveal myself to someone. But then when it came out you never were, I had to abandon that idea.

'I've been wanting to tell you for years, Cloud. But I knew I couldn't. Not until the right time. And… this is the right time. I always made sure I knew how to protect myself. And with the help of Materia, my powers grew.'

Rena's eyes flicked to Sephiroth.

'Even if you'd resorted to physical force, Sephiroth, you wouldn't have taken me anyway. I'm sorry.'


	17. There's A Storm Coming

Ignoring her last comment for the time being, Sephiroth seemed puzzled.

'Why is it the right time? Because we were fighting?' he inquired. Rena gave him an odd look. 'Haven't you… haven't you sensed it?' she asked, genuinely surprised. It was Cloud who answered, rolling his eyes.

'Nobody can sense like you can, Rena,' he said. Rena grew even more surprised. 'You can't? I thought it was because of the Jenova cells… I suppose since I got injected with more than you did…' she trailed off, shuddering at the memory.

'I've never been so happy for a man to die,' she whispered, looking away. When Cloud and Sephiroth gave nonplussed looks, she sighed. 'Professor Hojo.' Rena looked away. 'When I was drafted for SOLDIER, I met with Hojo and instantly disliked him. He always referred to me as 'the female specimen'. When I learned I was to have Jenova cells and Mako energy in my body, I blatantly refused and tried to escape.

'However, I was captured and had the experiment carried out anyway. After I went into hiding, I always vowed that one day I would kill the man who almost destroyed me, but I never had the opportunity. That's why I was so happy when he died.'

Cloud sympathized with his sister for a moment, before gently inquiring what she had sensed that had made her reveal her identity.

'Oh! Right. About a week ago, I was experimenting with some Materia. The yellow Materia, the one known as 'Sense', was being all weird. It keep trembling and flickering. So I used it, and it put this information in my mind. It told me there is a storm coming… I didn't really understand it, thinking it meant the weather, but I myself keep 'sensing' a storm too.

'No, it is not a weather storm. Once again, the Lifestream is reacting to the events that are happening on the Planet. Namely, you returning, Sephiroth. It remembers the one who tried to control it, tried to use it as a tool. I believe that Shinra wasn't your incentive to leave this planet, Sephiroth – you _did_ sense the storm, subconsciously, and now you're trying to escape.

'Perhaps that is the wisest thing to do,' she finished. Cloud was mulling over what she had said. Sephiroth was sweating. 'I have to leave then,' he said anxiously. 'I have to leave now before this storm comes. He jumped to his feet, turning to the controls and pushing buttons wildly.

Cloud looked at Rena, alarmed. She shook her head, walking over to where Sephiroth was behaving like a madman. She put a gentle hand on his shoulder, and he stopped and turned to her. 'You can't leave, not yet. For starters, there's a hole in your ship. But you need to stay here.

'The storm is going to destroy all those who have Jenova cells in them, in an attempt to finally eradicate all traces of the crisis from the sky. Only then will _you_ be fully gone. But that also means Cloud and all those failed experiment 'specimens' who are still alive will die as well. I will die as well. We can't let this happen, for their sake. You have to stay and fight. If you don't…' Rena took a step back, tears in her bright eyes.

'I guess this is goodbye.'


	18. The New AVALANCHE

Sephiroth was silent for a few moments. Then he growled and threw up his hands. 'I just _can't _win you, can I?' he asked exhaustedly. 'I'll stay and fight. I wouldn't have survived anyway. Oh, how you've changed me…'

Rena grinned. 'Did you notice when I touched you I didn't get the little episode? I think that that was the cloaking spell reacting with the overload of Jenova cells in your body. Lucky, eh?' She threw her arms around his neck in a tight hug.

'Thank you. I understand how hard it must be to look your death in the eye time and time again. And this may be the biggest enemy you've ever faced. I appreciate it,' she said into his ear. Sephiroth didn't reply. He was weeping.

'I truly do love you, Renata. And I understand if you don't love me back,' he replied. Rena shook her head unhappily. 'I'm sorry. I'm not the woman for you, Sephiroth. And you're not the man for me. Love comes and goes, no matter how deep it is.'

They broke the embrace, knowing it would probably be the last they ever shared.

* * *

A few hours later, the three warriors were aboard the Sierra. At first, the AVALANCHE crew refused to let Sephiroth on the ship. But when they learned that even Cloud trusted him, they grudgingly agreed. Besides, they weren't particularly interested in Sephiroth. None of them could stop staring at Rena.

After a period of time, they came to trust Sephiroth too. The differences were too obvious to ignore.

Cloud and Rena were talking.

'So all this time you've been a brilliant warrior and I've never known. Wow. I'd love to see you in action sometime. Short swords, eh? Different. And I bet you're as attuned to Materia as all those Wutaiese soldiers in the war. You must be hell on legs!' he exclaimed.

Rena laughed. 'I don't know about that, brother. I am good though,' she admitted. 'Must run in the family. After all, _I _wasn't the one who defeated the great Sephiroth and saved the Planet countless times!'

In another section of the airship, Sephiroth was talking quietly to Vincent. In any case, they had a lot to talk about…

Tifa, Yuffie and Barrett were also talking, and Cait Sith and Red XIII were keeping Cid company at the controls.

Rena took a glance around the room. _Who knew… another two SOLDIERS join AVALANCHE… the hero's sister and the greatest enemy… how times have changed._

It warmed her heart to know that so many wonderful warriors were all fighting for the people who couldn't defend themselves against circumstances that were unpreventable and riddled with mistakes.

But how would the settle the dilemma? They could not fight the Planet itself! Rena sighed. She had known the answer all along.

The crisis from the sky.


	19. Rufus' Assessment

_Back at Healin…_

'Reno… Reno…'

Reno vaguely recognized the sound of his name as he flitted in and out of dreams. He groaned as he finally awoke, a blurry image of Tseng coming to shape in front of his pale blue eyes.

'Reno!' said the leader of the Turks, growing impatient. Reno swatted the air – his injuries were much better, allowing him to move freely without pain – except of course for his hands. The doctors had told him for a while he wouldn't be able to use them at all, and even when they were as healed as they could be, strenuous use (like gripping weapons) would be painful.

But then again, it would always be painful, wouldn't it?

Reno shoved this miserable fact aside for the time being, and finally spoke.

'Sir…'

'Reno, the doctors say you're able to leave the Lodge today. And we need you now. There's no more time to spare. Get yourself into the bathroom – clean clothes will be in there for you,' commanded Tseng.

Groaning again, Reno stumbled out of bed and towards the bathroom. A few minutes later, he emerged, still yawning, but looking livelier.

'It's so good to be in the ol' uniform again, sir!' exclaimed the wild-haired man. Tseng nodded shortly and left the room. Reno followed with an easier stride. Tseng lead him down a few corridors and up some stairs, until they reached Rufus' office.

'Sir!' They both saluted their boss upon entering the room. The President of Shinra waved a hand lazily and the Turks took seats in front of his desk. 'Reno, I'm glad to have one of my top Turks back in action, although with the temporary loss of his hands,' he spoke absently, looking through some papers.

'The unfortunate occasion in which you encountered the injury is more important at the moment, though,' he continued. Reno grunted. Compassion wasn't Rufus' forte. 'Sephiroth has promptly run from his home and has stolen the Shinra No. 22 spacecraft as well. His intentions are obvious – he plans to leave the planet. For all we know, he could have already left.

'However… on report of his departure we called upon one Cloud Strife and one Rena Strife – both accomplished and enhanced warriors, the latter being a formidable member of SOLDIER, first class–' at this point Reno flinched, although Tseng remained calm. Apparently he had known about Rena's occupation, but Reno sure as hell hadn't!

'–only to find that both were also not present at their homes. Unable to ignore such blatant a give-away, we attempted to trace the soldiers, but were unsuccessful.' Rufus looked up from the report to stare at Reno and Tseng. Reno didn't notice, he was too busy thinking. Rena was SOLDIER… when was the last time he had seen her? Of course, she'd visited him in the hospital.

Reno sat up straighter, thinking harder. And when she had gone to leave, she had a strange sort of gleam in her eyes… like anticipation or maybe even fear. Was it possible she had been going to see Sephiroth? It was definitely an option…

'Sir?' inquired Reno. Rufus inclined his head.

'Rena Strife made an appearance in the medical lab on the day that the theft was recorded. When she left I couldn't help but notice she seemed frightened and a bit reluctant. Should we be considering that she went to see Sephiroth? It is known they were good friends and that Sephiroth may have had–' Reno tightened his jaw '–intense affection for her.

'If you inquire at Cosmo Canyon, the location where Rena was currently residing, you may find she didn't return that evening. I believe Sephiroth kidnapped her and Cloud went after her. Jenova's cells give people heightened senses… Cloud might've sensed her danger.' Reno paused. 'Of course, sir, this is only a calculated guess, I may be entirely wrong.'

Rufus was silent for a few moments. Then he smiled. 'You've truly grown smarter since you've been with us, Reno. Your explanation is the best we have. Tseng, send Elena to Cloud's house and have her question Tifa Lockhart, whilst you go to Cosmo Canyon and inquire there. Reno, you and Rude will proceed to hunt down the three missing subjects with _all haste_. If Sephiroth leaves the planet… there's no telling what will happen.'

'You are dismissed.'


	20. Missing Members

The very same Turks arrived back in Rufus' office some time later, both in a state of confusion and irritation – and in Reno's case, a bit of panic.

It turned out that not only had Cloud and Rena disappeared, Tifa, Red XIII and all the other AVALANCHE members had gone too.

'Sir!' They saluted again on entering the threshold of the office. Rufus once more waved his hand, this time eagerly, as he awaited news.

'Tseng, what is your report?' asked Rufus.

'I went to Cosmo Canyon to find out the whereabouts of Rena Strife and was informed by the leader of the town that she had returned sometime earlier in the day but had departed again with the AVALANCHE member Red XIII, also known as Nanaki, who is the town's protector.

'Elena reported back to me that Tifa Lockhart was also not in residence in her home, and that the orphan she looks after, Denzel, was in care of the deceased Aeris Gainsborough's adoptive mother, Elmyra Gainsborough. When questioned, the woman confirmed Tifa's absence, but claimed she did not know the whereabouts.

'Under the influence of a Manipulate materia, this claim was identified as truth. Elena and myself proceeded to track down the remaining AVALANCHE members, only to find that each had disappeared. Former Head of Urban Development Reeve Tuesti, also identified as controller of the AVALANCHE puppet Cait Sith, now founder of the World Regenesis Organization project was also tracked, but had disappeared as well.'

Rufus frowned. He then shifted his gaze to Reno. 'And your report?' he inquired, noticeably less eager.

'Rude and I searched the larger part of Edge and Midgar, all the way to the outskirts, amongst towns Kalm, Gongaga, Chocobo Farm and Mythril Mines to no conclusion. We do, however, know of another place, on the coastal edge of Midgar. It's somewhat like an underground cave, but it would be the perfect place to hide a spacecraft. It's a longshot, but it's the best we can do.'

The President of Shinra nodded. 'Search that cave will all due haste, Reno. Tseng, you stay here. You are dismissed,' he ordered, looking back to his paperwork. The two men left the office and went their separate ways.

As Reno walked downstairs, he pondered the situation. All the AVALANCHE members were gone? That means that they went after Cloud and Rena – but that didn't necessarily mean the pair were in trouble? Perhaps they had escaped and called together AVALANCHE? It was so confusing… and there was so much guesswork.

Reno sighed. He still couldn't really believe that Rena was SOLDIER… he winced when he realized that she had had to be put through all the experiments and tests that Hojo had given to each SOLDIER… and that she had had to endure the pain of Jenova's cells when called for Reunion or whatever it was that had happened in the Northern Crater.

He shuddered. He would much rather have painful hands for the rest of his life than go through those procedures. On exiting the building he called Rude, who was waiting at the site of the cave. 'We got permission. I'll be there soon,' he spoke into it.


	21. Blame And Forgive

'Hey, uhh, I just thought of something.'

All the members of AVALANCHE turned to stare at Sephiroth.

'Yeah. Rufus and the Turks are probably after me and once they find out you've all gone too, they'll be after all of us,' he said. Yuffie tilted her head to the side. 'Why does Rufus want you? I thought he did all his tests and everything already?' she inquired.

'He wants me to have 'no emotional ties' and all that stuff. Basically, he wants to lock me up to make sure I don't do anything he doesn't approve of. He already sent Reno and Rude for me the night Rena visited. I gave Reno a little makeover to teach Rufus a lesson.' As Sephiroth said this last line, a kind of dark gleam took on his glowing eyes.

The others all shifted uncomfortably, glancing at one another. Rena stared at her friend, fury surfacing in her eyes. 'Sephiroth, I need to talk to you. Privately,' she told him coldly. Rena then stalked out of the main deck. Sephiroth was startled, and then followed.

As soon as he shut the door behind him, the side of his face connected with a staggering blow. Stumbling back, but recovering quickly – on a regular man or even a third class SOLDIER, that hit would have definitely shattered his jaw – Sephiroth turned to face Rena, an incredulous look on his face.

'What was that for?' he cried. Rena stared daggers at him. 'That's for claiming to be a new man when you aren't at all! Reno in no way deserved that kind of treatment! If you've got a bone to pick with Rufus, _go to Rufus himself_! Did you know that because of you, his hands will hurt all his life?' she exclaimed. Sephiroth's expression remained calm.

Rena snorted. 'Of course, with someone else, that news would be horrifying, but oh no, not with almighty Sephiroth! No, to you it's just another hurt you've inflicted on countless people! To you it's just another way to leave your mark! You sicken me!' she yelled, storming back towards the deck.

Before opening the door, she turned back and punched him again, harder. 'And that's for Rude!' Rena flounced back into the main room.

Sephiroth was actually driven to his knees with the force this time. How much Mako had they put into her? She was stronger than Cloud… Rena must be the strongest SOLDIER on record, albeit himself. Sephiroth shuddered. The hell she must have gone through with Hojo's torture… how she didn't hate everything and everyone was beyond him.

'Love,' said a soft voice behind him. Jumping, Sephiroth got to his feet and turned around. There was no-one there. Confused, the ex-SOLDIER began to walk back to the deck when a gentle hand brushed his arm and he caught a scent of flowers. Whipping around again, the hallway was still empty.

'Love cures all hurts and makes all destruction seem lighter…' said the voice. 'Does your impending death not seem less ominous with Rena by your side?' Sephiroth remembered that voice. The voice that had made him yearn for a loving mother… the Cetra he had murdered. If not for her spell, the world would have been destroyed.

'All sin can be forgiven with the existence of love – even those deemed unforgivable,' she went on. Another hand touched his cheek and he felt warmer. 'I forgive you for what you did to me… because I love.' Then the voice faded. Sephiroth listened for a moment, then went back into the control room.


	22. Search For The Sierra

Reno and Rude were standing in front of the damaged spacecraft.

'Well… shit,' murmured Reno.

A large hole in the side looked as if it was the result of an explosion, and it also looked big enough for a person to climb through. The two Turks did just that, and began to scout the interior.

A few drops of blood near the controls of the ship were a telltale sign of a struggle. Looking closely, Rude noticed some minor scorch marks a few paces away from the blood. They were so small that they couldn't possibly have been from a fire.

'Magic spell,' explained Reno when he noticed what his partner was looking at. 'Rena's cloaking spell.' Rude nodded and they searched the rest of the ship to no avail. There were supplies, clothes and weapons but nothing to give them a clue of the whereabouts of Sephiroth.

Leaving the ship, the two men walked back out of the cave onto the surface. The shining sun hurt Reno's facial scars a little. Most had healed and disappeared, but a couple of deeper ones would remain. As for his hands, he could manage small things, like mobile phones, cutlery and door handles.

And he certainly couldn't wield his weapon. As a result, he's been practicing more martial arts, and materia development. Rufus' stores of materia were vast, even with the destruction of Shinra HQ. Each Turk had a full set of materia to master, and with Reno's increased use, his were all mastered.

Reno and Rude were walking back to the helicopter when Rude noticed some marks on the grass. Getting closer, he realized it was as if something heavy had landed here. And it was big, the dents in the grass extending for long way. 'The Sierra,' he recognized the new airship.

'So AVALANCHE must've come to rescue Rena and Cloud. So where does that leave Sephiroth? Is he with them? Probably… he has nowhere else to go,' Reno mused. The men got into the helicopter and proceeded to fly back to Healin to tell Rufus their news.

* * *

'We have to find the Sierra. Ugh, this would be so much easier if we were back at the HQ. Alright, I want all four of you senior Turks to take two helicopters and start searching. Remember that it could be in transit, so look in front of you as well as below. It's rather large, so it shouldn't be too hard. As soon as you find it, surround and make sure AVALANCHE can't escape. Then call me.' Rufus sighed.

'Never cease to cause us trouble, do they?' he asked tiredly. 'Dismissed.'

The four Turks who had been in attention left, Reno and Rude taking the first helicopter, Tseng and Elena the second. As soon as they were in the skies, the helicopters stayed close, searching the ground below.

An hour passed, and they were passing over the last continent, when something caught Elena's attention. 'Hey!' she cried. Tseng looked over to where she pointed. 'Isn't that the airship?'

Sure enough, a large shiny mechanical device glinted in the sunlight. Elena frowned. 'Where are we?' she asked. 'Wutai continent,' replied Tseng. 'That's Ocean Village, the town Rena's father founded.' He named the town that the airship was sitting next to. 'Famous for its stores of Materia…'


	23. Reunion All Over Again

AVALANCHE were sitting around Rena's living room, nursing cups of coffee, trying to come up with a plan.

'It's always #ing Jenova, isn't it?' growled Cid, ever-present cigarette in between his lips. Barrett snorted. 'Whaddya expect, old man? Chocobos?' he asked. Cid muttered something under his breath and took a long drag.

'Let's be reasonable,' Tifa spoke up. 'We've beaten her… him… it time after time… in all its forms, and through–' she glanced at Sephiroth, who just shrugged '–Sephiroth. Can't we defeat it again, someway?'

Cloud sighed, and rubbed his eyes. 'How? We thought the last of its remains went with Kadaj and them. If there's still something left of it, how are we to kill it? There is, of course, all the Jenova cells in all the people Gast and Hojo experimented on. But we can't possibly remove them, can we? We'd have to kill them. And then how is that better than letting this storm come?'

'People with Jenova cells?' asked Sephiroth. 'No, they're all dead, remember? You were the only Sephiroth-clone to have survived Reunion. And as for the SOLDIERS, well, they're all dead or crazy. Minus Rena, of course.'

The team thought for a moment. Then it was Yuffie who spoke up.

'The only ones who survived…'

All the heads swiveled to face the teenager, bewildered. 'What?' asked Cloud.

'Cloud and Rena. And now, Sephiroth. Reunion? The aim of Reunion was to gather everyone with Jenova cells in them to the one place where Sephiroth could make them whole again, right? So… if a part of Jenova is still alive, wouldn't the people with Jenova cells in them be drawn to that spot? It's just Reunion all over again!'

There was a shocked silence in the room for several minutes as everyone stared at Yuffie. She blinked and frowned. Staring. She raised her eyebrows. Staring. And then– 'Why don't you take a picture, it lasts longer!'

Everyone burst out laughing, except Sephiroth and Vincent.

'We're… we're sorry, Yuffie,' gasped Tifa, wiping tears from her eyes. 'But we've just never heard you say something that intelligent the whole time we've known you!' And with that, she started laughing again.

Yuffie muttered under her breath and slumped back into her chair, crossing her arms.

Once everyone had calmed down, it was Rena who spoke up.

'Well! As you all know, I obviously wasn't present through the events of Reunion and Meteor and everything that you guys did. But if what Yuffie says is true, and I think it is, are we meant to be feeling something? Like, uh, being drawn to something?'

Vincent moved out of the shadows.

'It's sub-conscious. You don't realize it's happening until you're standing exactly on the spot you've been drawn to.' He glanced at Rena.

'Ever feel like holidaying in Mideel?'


	24. BUY ME A NEW FRONT DOOR

Rena blinked.

'Mideel? I was going to go there in a few days time to visit… uh, who was I going to visit? Hmm. I can't remember.' She tilted her head to the side.

Vincent raised an eyebrow.

'You see? You've been drawn there and you don't even know why,' he murmured.

Cloud narrowed his brilliant eyes. 'Mideel? There was something I was going to pick up there too. But since I can't remember what it was, I suppose I've been drawn there. Sephiroth?' The blonde man turned to his former nemesis.

Sephiroth shrugged.

'Not really. Can't think of any reasons I'd be going there lately.' His brow furrowed. 'But I don't have the same genetic makeup as you two. I have way more Jenova in me. Maybe it makes a difference.'

'Either way,' interrupted Cid. 'We should get going to Mideel. It's a fair way from here and I'd like to get there before tomorrow. Also, I–'

The pilot was cut off by an earsplitting crash.

Everyone in the room cringed, ducked or jumped to their feet, weapons drawn. Rena stalked out of the room to find the source of the crash, and was not pleased. Her beautiful front door was in pieces, wood and sawdust everywhere.

And in the midst of it all, Reno and Rude stood coughing.

'Reno, you idiot!' screeched Rena. She stormed over to him and shoved him in the chest. He stumbled back a few paces, almost tripping but catching himself just in time. 'What the _shit _do you think you're doing breaking down my door?!'

Reno, bewildered, took awhile before he could make words come out of his mouth.

'We, uh, we…' The redhead glanced at Rude. The taller man shrugged and adjusted his sunglasses.

'We just _did_.'

Rena's blue eyes lit up with rage and indignation. 'You two,' she began, pointing accusing fingers at the two Turks. 'Are going to get out of my house, go to the _very _expensive wood seller in Bone Village and buy me A NEW FRONT DOOR!'

Reno cringed and Rude winced.

'Listen, we just came to–' _capture you so we can cart you back to Rufus _'–see what was happening. You all disappeared so Rufus sent us to–' _come and lock you up so you'll never cause trouble again _'–find you. Is everything all right?' asked Reno, almost twitching with the real reason they were there trying to escape his mouth.

Rena sighed, deflated. 'Go into the living room. We're all here.'

As Reno went to move past her, she grabbed his sleeve. 'Are you sure you're okay?' she asked him quietly. 'Sephiroth's in there and I will not have you trying to hurt him. What he did was wrong but no-ones in trouble, no-ones in danger and that goes for you, too. So go in there and behave or I'll kick your sorry ass back into last week.'

* * *

**A/N: **Initially, before the change, Rena's character was meant to be pretty Aeris-esque, you know, angelic and innocent and giving and all that stuff. But now I've decided she's more of a vibrant being – she swears and shouts and beats up Sephiroth! I think I like her better this way.

It restores balance – you can have a pensive Strife and then a totally engaging Strife! Woo!


	25. Tension

So there they all were – Rena, Cloud, Sephiroth, Reno, Rude, Vincent, Red XIII, Tifa, Yuffie, Cait Sith, Cid, Barrett and the recently joined (after smirking at the wreckage of Rena's door) Tseng and Elena.

If an outsider had walked into the room right at that moment, while all of them were sitting in silence, he probably would have hurriedly apologized and gotten the hell out of there. The tension was so thick you could have cut it.

Rena was staring daggers at both Sephiroth and Reno, glaring from one to the other to make sure they didn't do anything stupid.

Sephiroth, in turn, was calmly looking at Reno, a blank expression on his face.

Reno, on the other hand, was almost twitching in barely contained rage, his hands throbbing.

Tseng was smirking at Cloud as Elena looked down her nose at Tifa. Cloud, in turn, was narrowing his eyes at Rena.

Tifa was worriedly glancing from cool Elena to clenched-teeth Yuffie – the ninja's hands were slowly moving closer and closer to her Conformer as she glowered at the blonde Turk.

Barrett and Cid were all crossed arms and steely gazes, and Red XIII lay calmly at Yuffie's feet, tail trembling. Cait Sith was grinning his robotic cat grin at everyone, and Vincent was merely looking at the wall.

After a few more minutes of this, someone finally spoke up.

'Quit ya grudges an' let's do something about this!' growled Barrett. With those words, it was as if everyone was broken out of some kind of spell, and they all turned expectantly to Barrett.

'Don't look at me. I got nothing to say. Spiky over there's the leader,' he said, nodding to Cloud.

The man in question cleared his throat. 'Well. It seems the Turks are here to rat us out to Shinra, no surprise there–' (this comment was met by angry shouts from Reno and Elena) '–so we may as well all work together on this.' Cloud turned to Tseng.

'A special Sense materia communicated with Rena, and prophesized that a 'storm' was coming. Again, the Lifestream is trying to kill Jenova. There are still the remaining traces of Jenova in Sephiroth, Rena and I. We know that all others died in Reunion,' he explained.

Tseng thought for a moment.

'Why didn't Rena die in Reunion, then? All the other SOLDIER did, first class or no. What was her excuse?' he inquired.

Cloud and Rena exchanged glances, surprised and puzzled. Neither knew.

'I… I don't know,' began Rena. 'I did feel a vague connection to the Crater, but nothing that would ever make me feel like going to such a place. I don't know why. Because I'm a woman? Because I am the most Jenova- and Mako-filled being after Sephiroth? I just don't know. It could be many things.'

Reno spoke up. 'That's all in the past. We need to focus on _right now_. Storm's a-coming. We gotta prepare.'

* * *

**A/N: **I've started using these author's notes as ways to explain small details and provide extra information. Here is my recap so far.

Materia/materia: I don't know what I'm doing here. I keep switching from a capital M to a lower case M – don't take any notice. It's not significant.

SOLDIER: You may have realized I don't use the letter S at the end of the word when referring to the plural. That's because I always thought of it that way. Example!

I say: _Rena is SOLDIER_. I do not say: _Rena is a SOLDIER_. It's just how I do. Ignore it if the feeling isn't mutual.

Details I've left out earlier, changed the storyline and not gone back and fixed: I suppose I'll get to that sometime. If it really bothers you, drop me a line.

Pairings: Use your imagination! Don't try too hard, though – the story isn't finished and there may be more pairings to be developed later on.

Thanks for reading. Please review if you can be bothered. : )


	26. Good Plans, Naughty Plans

Cloud glanced around.

'Hmm. Preparations, preparations… Does everyone still have their ultimate weapons? All intact? Rena and Yuffie, you guys can go over the materia stores, check what's mastered and what isn't, and update us on what we need.

'Barrett, Cid and Red, you three can scout ahead to Mideel – _no, Cid, I don't care how long it takes; use the Bronco or the buggy or something. Don't you have another airship holed up in that town of yours? _– and check if there's anything amiss there. There wouldn't be much rebuilding to be done there, I'd imagine. They finished putting to plan that whole 'town-on-a-platform-above-Lifestream' idea, didn't they? Right.

'Tifa and I will go to everyone's town and pick up supplies. Tifa can draw up a list of what everyone needs. Weapons, items, materia – whatever else. We're preparing for a battle, remember? We must be ready!

'Turks – I don't care what you four do, as long as you don't get in our way. Scuttle back to Rufus; tell him our plans, whatever. Help if you like. We'll be doing this regardless of what you think. If you _do_ help, however, we could use those helicopters of yours.

'Vincent, Cait: take the Sierra to the Crater and see if there's any unusual activity around there. It's a hotbed for Planet energy and Mako, surely there's something going on over there. Make sure you're well equipped; anything could be down there at the moment.

Cloud turned to Sephiroth.

'Sephiroth… would you rather go to Mideel, or the Crater? Or stay here with Rena? It's up to you.'

While Sephiroth spoke to Cloud, a sweat had broken out on Reno's forehead.

_This is getting out of hand_, he thought. They needed to capture these people, and now! Personally, Reno thought Rufus was something of an idiot, to think he could just capture so many powerful people and get away with it.

Reno didn't think the four of them were capable of it. Three were as good as SOLDIER (one of which had a sword taller than him), another was built like a wrestler with a fatal arm, two had claws, one other had a tongue as sharp as his spear, two others could incapacitate him with a flurry of limbs and the last was a robot.

How could they possibly beat AVALANCHE?

They couldn't. They were just a couple of suits with expensive guns and big talk. Sure, they could take more damage than the average guy, and were more skilled, but not compared to these guys.

They were the elite. The best of the best. The do-gooders that every criminal feared. The terrorists. The _nice _terrorists.

Fuck.

But still, with enough trickery, would they be able to capture them? They could… they could lure them to Healin. Drop a giant cage on them, Kisaragi-style? Maybe a mastered Seal/All materia would do the trick.

Reno sat up a little straighter. Hey, that might just do it! His hand injuries resulted in a better feel for materia, and Reno thought he could pull it off. While Cloud was discussing more plans, Reno eased a tender hand into Elena's handbag, where the team kept their materia and other items.

_Let's see…_

_Fire, Restore, Manipulate, All, Lightning, Pre-Emptive… _Reno pulled out the mastered All and set it on his lap, before reaching in again. _Sense, HP Plus, Ice, Seal, Counter… _The Turk pulled out the green orb and set it beside the All.

Stealthily, Reno slipped his current materia out of his gun, and placed the two new materia in their place.

Leaning to his right, he whispered his plan to Rude. The taller man's brows snapped together, just visible over his dark sunglasses. He nodded curtly and passed the message to Elena, who looked pleased and told Tseng. The Turk leader leaned forward to look down the line at Reno expectantly.

The redhead grinned and raised his gun slightly, showing Tseng the pair of materia. The Wutaian nodded slightly and sat back.


	27. Sneak Attack

Rena and Yuffie were sitting on the living room floor, surrounded by small glowing balls. One the right side of Yuffie was a clumsily arranged pile of balls that glowed brighter than the rest. They were the mastered materia.

Between the two was another haphazard pile of globes, this one for materia that was in the process of leveling.

The third pile, left of Rena, was for newborn materia, that had no experience on them at all.

The SOLDIER held a clipboard with a list of all the materia on it.

'Earth?' she asked, pen poised. Yuffie rummaged around in the piles. 'Five mastered, two leveling and three newborn,' the younger girl replied.

Rena made a note.

'Long Range?' she asked. Yuffie again scrutinized the three piles. 'Lessee… two mastered, one leveling,' she said promptly.

The two women had been checking the materia inventory for over an hour, and had barely gotten through half of it. They were getting tired.

Rena put aside the clipboard and flopped backwards onto the floor. Wincing as her shoulder blade hit a stray materia, she extracted the blue ball.

'Sneak Attack. If that isn't irony, I don't know what is…'

Yuffie giggled and lay back beside Rena, careful for any other shifty hard globes.

'I wonder how Vincent and Cait Sith are going… Cloud's a bit daft, isn't he? I wouldn't be surprised if Cait returns with a bullet hole in his moogle. The thing gets pretty annoying, and Vincent isn't exactly the easy-going type,' grinned Rena.

'Yeah, you're right! I didn't think about that. So!' exclaimed the ninja, extending her elbow and nudging Rena a few times.

'You and Sephy, eh?' she asked cheekily. Rena blushed as she stared reproachfully at Yuffie.

'Don't you start! There is no 'me and Sephy', thank you! I have no love interest in him,' she told the princess.

Yuffie rolled her eyes.

'It's Reno, then? Isn't it? C'mon! I've seen the way you two act around each other! He gets all quiet and deep, which is, like, so not him. And then you get all flustered and awkward. It's written on the walls, Rena!'

Rena opened her mouth to retort something, but then closed it again. She didn't really have any quips for this one. _Sneak Attack, indeed_.

Yuffie, indulging in her friend's confused silence, grinned broadly.

'That's what I thought.'


	28. Suiting Up

Half an hour after Yuffie and Rena's chat, the two women, Sephiroth, Cloud and Tifa met up again just outside Ocean Village.

Tifa hopped off the motorbike and grabbed two large, bulky bags. Cloud, already holding three other bags, nodding to the party, entered the village, Tifa behind him. Sephiroth had chosen to stay in the village while the others were out, and when Cloud arrived he had been strolling around the cliffs.

Now he approached Rena. 'So is everything okay with the materia, Rena?' he asked.

Rena nodded. 'We have everything we need. Two sets of Master Materia; and at least two mastered materia of each type and colour. Now all we have to do is wait for Vincent and Cait to return, before we can head off to Mideel.'

The brunette shaded her eyes as she looked up into the sky.

'We don't even know what we're doing,' she said quietly, so only Sephiroth could hear. Yuffie was talking to one of the elders of the village nearby.

'We're getting all prepared and pumped up and we don't even know what the hell we're up against. It's ridiculous.'

Sephiroth smiled grimly. 'Out of the whole group, you and I were the only ones not present those years ago. I was on my own mission, and only met with AVALANCHE a handful of times; you were here in the village living your life, wondering if your brother would survive.

'This could've happened every single day for AVALANCHE. We just weren't _there_, we have no clue. This is a quest, now, Rena. Expect the unexpected, all that talk. Sure, we don't know what we're going to fight. But it's better to be safe than sorry, isn't it? We just have to ride the wave.'

Rena groaned. She grabbed the last heavy bag off Cloud's bike and hauled it into the village.

* * *

Cloud and Tifa had collected weapons, a few odd materia, items, armour, accessories and supplies from various towns.

Yuffie was practicing with her Conformer in the garden (ensuing smashed windows); Tifa and Cloud were arranging items and Sephiroth and Rena were examining all the armour and accessories they'd never had access to before.

Rena grinned as she clipped a Fourth Bracelet to her arm. 'I'll be taking this!' she announced. Running her hands through the pile of amulets and various other ornaments, she extracted a Touph Ring. Sephiroth twitched when he saw it.

'My ring!' he exclaimed, grabbing for it. Rena moved her arm out of reach, confused.

Sephiroth growled. 'That's my ring! That bastard Reno took it from me. Cloud must've stolen it back from Reno.'

Rena sighed and reluctantly handed over the powerful ring. Sticking a hand into the pile again, she pulled out two silver anklets. 'Sprint Shoes!' she cried. Clipping the anklets over her boots, she felt faster already.

Sephiroth slipped on the Touph Ring and also took a Bolt Armlet.

Once the two were suited up, they received their share of items from Cloud. A few X-Potions, some Elixirs, a couple of Phoenix Downs, that sort of thing. Rena felt positively excited. She had never been on an adventure like this before. She just hoped she'd be able to keep up with the others.

Vincent and Cait Sith arrived shortly afterwards. They said the only thing different about the Crater was a strange abundance of Tonberry's (which explained a knife sticking out the side of Cait's moogle) and that the places where the Lifestream flowed were rushing faster.

After the newcomers were all equipped, everyone jumped in the Sierra

'And off we go!' yelled Yuffie as the vast airship took to the skies. Mideel wouldn't know what had hit it.

* * *

**AN: **I like this one. I do.

And for all those Final Fantasy fans, have you ever heard the Advent Children version of J-E-N-O-V-A? The last two minutes of it makes me want to marry it.

Download and listen to it!

Thanks for reading, as always.


	29. All Muscles, I Tell Ya

The pilots of the Sierra were apprehensive at first about going to Mideel.

'The captain says…'

'Mr. Highwind is always telling us…'

'…and that's why he demands that we never to go there.'

Rena leaned over to murmur in Cloud's ear. 'Why does the old man hate Mideel so much?' she inquired.

Cloud grimaced. 'About a year back, he was checking some machinery for a friend. There were some larger parts they brought out into the forest and put near the Sierra. His friend kept boasting about Mideel having the best parts in the world, such fine metals in Mideel, basically, Mideel this, Mideel that. Cid was just about to shut him up when…'

'When…' his sister prompted.

'A few of the parts were faulty and blew up. They killed Cid's friend and blew off half of the Sierra. Cid himself broke an arm. Set the forest on fire and burned for quite a bit before the fire brigade got it under control.

It wasn't really Mideel's fault, but that's who Cid blamed. Badly made parts, false guarantees, that kind of thing. So he's hated the place since. Poor guy.'

Rena sighed. 'Yeah, that must've sucked. But still, you can't blame a town for a few faulty parts. And also, considering everything, he didn't put up much of a fight going there when you asked him, either. All he said was that it was going to take a while. And when you first mentioned it, he was the first to get going!'

Cloud grinned. 'Shera's there at the moment. Cid already had it out with her about going a week ago. It's out of his system. He just wants to see her, now,' he replied. Rena smiled. 'That's sweet.'

Once Yuffie talked (screamed at) the pilots into flying to Mideel, she retired to her spot by the cargo. 'Another fun trip,' she told Rena ruefully, before slapping a hand to her mouth and gurgling as she stumbled past.

Rena sought out Popo, Cloud's blue Chocobo. He had brought all seven of them along in the Sierra in case there was an emergency. There was a good, a great, a blue, a green, a black and two golds. Rena had immediately chosen Popo. Yuffie commandeered Maelys, the green one; Vincent took Ferme (black, naturally); Tifa had Tetra, the great, Cid rode Laurie, the good; and Cloud had one of the golds, Coon. Barrett, because of his immense weight – 'all muscles, I tell ya!' – took the remaining gold, Alex.

Rena had always found the smell and the presence of Chocobos comforting. They were like chicks… only massively so. She sat with Popo as the Sierra sped across the cliffs surrounding Ocean Village. Past the cliffs… over the valleys… across the beach…

Before Rena knew it, she dozed off, head resting on Popo's wing.

* * *

When she woke up, it was night, and they were just passing Cosmo Canyon. By morning they would reach Mideel.

Getting up gently – Popo was fast asleep – Rena left the stable-room and headed for the main deck. Tifa and one of the pilots were there, talking quietly. Smiling as she past them, Rena headed to the front window and leaned on the rail, looking out.

The view was gorgeous; stars winked in and out between vast curtains of obsidian sky. Underneath her, shadowed grass stretched out for acres, dancing gently in the wind. A couple of frogs looked up from a river as the airship neared Gongaga.

Looking at the clock, Rena saw it was four in the morning. She peered up at the moon. It was getting close the horizon, the sky a little lighter where the infant sun's weak rays shone. Yawning, Rena returned to the stable-room, settling against Popo to sleep till morning.

* * *

**AN: **Yes, those _are _what I called my Chocobos. Except Laurie, I made that up cuz I couldn't remember that one's name. :x

I've got ideas for a battle scene; I just need to write the chapters that will take me to that scene.

Don't worry, they'll get to Mideel… eventually.


	30. It's Not Rocket Science

By nine in the morning every AVALANCHE-r was up and awake, eager to see what Mideel had in store for them.

Even Yuffie rose to the occasion – unfortunately, her breakfast rose with her.

The ship landed at ten o'clock just outside Mideel. The buggy was also parked there. Cid and the others had arrived safely.

What surprised them were two Shinra helicopters and four aggressive Turks standing next to the buggy.

The group approached them.

'So you came after all,' began Cloud. He stopped short as he stared down the barrel of Tseng's gun. The tall man cocked the weapon and took a step forward until the tip of the gun was an inch away from Cloud's forehead.

'That's enough,' he said coldly. The other Turk's stepped forward, readying their weapons. Reno's eyes flicked to Rena and back to Cloud.

'It's as far as you go, Strife. The real reason Rufus sent us was to lock you all up. He decided you do-gooders and Sephiroth were causing too much trouble for his liking. This is why we're here to take you away. So, as they say, we can do this the easy way or the hard way…'

Yuffie giggled as she spun her Conformer.

'Tseng, you're so full of shit!' she called sweetly. The said man growled but didn't take his eyes of Cloud. Tifa took on her fighting stance as Vincent leveled the Death Penalty at Rude's head. Cait's moogle danced around on the spot as the cat himself grinned at the Turks. Sephiroth stood there, blankly, sword not drawn.

Rena had her twin swords drawn, eyes on Reno.

Cloud raised his hands. 'Something tells me,' he said to Tseng. 'That we've chosen the hard way.'

In a split-second he had his massive sword drawn and Tseng's gun was lying a few feet away. Elena launched a kick at Tifa followed by a punch to Yuffie and soon the three were enmeshed in a flurry of fists, feet and oversized shuriken.

A bullet whizzed past Rude's ear as he dodged and weaved, making his way over to Vincent. The ex-Turk paused to reload his weapon, and gracefully jumped out of the way of Rude's powerful punch.

Cait and moogle bounced past Cloud, tripping on a stray rock and falling on top of Tseng. The man grunted and tried to shove the massive toy off him while Cait clobbered him with tiny fists. Cloud went to join in the fight.

Rena took a few steps forward; one sword pointed forward, one sword pointed back. Reno swallowed as he saw the SOLDIER coming, reaching for his electro-mag rod. Closing his hand around it, he remembered the materia plan and grabbed his gun instead.

'Rena,' he called. 'Rena, I don't want to hurt you.'

The woman smirked as she crouched, ready to lunge. 'You couldn't lay a finger on me,' she announced. Just as Reno saw her move, he raised the gun and shouted over the noise,

'**_STOP ALL_**!'

The spell raced out of the orbs in his gun, tiny holographic clocks surrounding all of AVALANCHE. They instantly froze in their positions, weapons raised, mouths open. Reno sighed in relief as he stared at the angry woman about to attack him. It had worked.

Tseng heaved himself out from underneath the moogle, stood, and brushed himself off. Then he went from member to member, inspecting their statue-like state. It was then he got to Yuffie. Just as he peered into his face, she yelled out, startling the Turk into falling backwards.

Laughing wickedly, the teenager tapped the red ribbon around her arm.

'Tsk, Turks. You should know that we have state of the art armour and such by now. You think it's going to take one measly spell to defeat us? Think again. I'm the Great Ninja Kisaragi, losers! You can't keep me down!'

With that, she flashed her own materia (Rude noticed particularly a green and a yellow before groaning) slotted into her Conformer, before grinning and calling,

'**_ESUNA VINCENT_**,** _ESUNA CLOUD_**!'

Instantly Vincent and Cloud came back into motion, looking around. They realized what had happen and began to rain down attacks on the Turks once more. Yuffie gulped down a quick Ether before casting the same spell on the rest of the group.

Running to continue her fight with Elena, Tifa noticed a few people running out of Mideel. Squinting, the woman grinned as she recognized the group.

Cid, Barrett, Red and Shera had come to join the fight. Well, Shera was there more for moral support and healing. Cid roared as he swung his spear out and tripped Rude, sending the bald man tumbling to the ground. Red leaped onto Reno, tearing his suit with sharp claws and teeth. Barrett shot round after round into the air, not caring much which Turk he hit.

'Shera!' called Tifa, dancing around Elena, and holding her arm with one hand. 'Throw me a Potion!'

Cid's wife, who was standing well away from the fighting, rummaged through a bag of items. 'Which is it?!' she wailed helplessly. Yuffie ran past, Tseng on her heels. 'The green bottle! C'mon, Mrs. Cid, it's not rocket science!' she yelled.

The rocket scientist looked up brightly. 'You know, rocket science isn't actually as hard as people make it out to be. It's really just…' Shera began.

Cid thrust his spear into a spot where Rude's waist had been seconds before. 'Shut her up now or she'll never stop!' he advised Yuffie, yelling over the noise. The ninja grinned.

Shera sniffed. 'Don't forget you're half a rocket scientist yourself, dear!' she announced drawing herself up. Tifa glanced at the woman.

'Shera!' she shrieked. 'How's that potion coming?!'

The brunette snapped back to attention and clumsily threw the green bottle. The throw was a bad one and the bottle smashed on a rock, its contents dribbling into the grass.

The group collectively groaned as Shera turned bright red and called her apologies. Vincent cast a Cure on Tifa and the fight raged on. Sephiroth still stood away from the battle, sword still in its sheath.

Rena advanced on Reno once more. The redhead, with no more insurance against Rena's awesome skills, broke and ran for the helicopter.

'We can't beat them, guys!' he called to his fellows. The other Turks turned as one and jumped back into the helicopters. Within seconds, the Shinra employees were gone.

* * *

**AN: **It's a long one, this one. I like it. I like long chapters, I just.. can't do them, most of the time.

I've been noticing mistakes and inconsistencies I've made in previous chapters. If you see them, it's just cuz I haven't fixed them yet. Bear with me.

Thankyoooh!


	31. Mideel

'Chickens!' screamed Yuffie after the retreating helicopters. 'Assholes! Losers! Come back here and finish it!' She threw her shuriken in a wide arc. It whizzed past the group and squarely hit one of the helicopters in the side. The vehicle jerked and faltered, sinking for a few feet before regaining balance and flying once more.

Yuffie smiled as the shuriken came dancing back into her hands.

AVALANCHE recuperated for a few moments, nursing wounds and catching their breath. Rena walked over to Cloud, who was telling Tifa the small cut on his arm didn't require emergency attention.

'It's just like a paper cut, Teef! Look, the stuffing's coming out of Cait's moogle. Go stitch _that _up!' he exclaimed. Tifa went over to Cait Sith grumbling. Rena smiled. 'You're so mean, big brother,' she stated, as she plopped down on the grass beside him.

'Hey, hey. I don't care to be mollycoddled by women.'

'You love it.'

'I do not!'

'You so do!'

'I promise you, that I don't.'

'What about that time when you got bitten by that stray dog? You spent like ten minutes sobbing in Aeris' arms!'

'…that was different! How the hell did you find out about that anyway?!'

'I have my ways.'

While Rena and Cloud were arguing, Cid and Tifa were teaching Shera each kind of item so that in the future, Tifa wouldn't die of a festering wound before she got the treatment she needed. Barrett, Vincent and Cait were pointing to Mideel and talking with raised voices about something. Yuffie was playing 'Catch-The-Tail-But-Don't-Get-Third-Degree-Burns!' with Red. Sephiroth was nowhere to be seen.

After ten minutes, the group heaved themselves up and into Mideel.

'So, Cid, Barrett, Red, what did you find out when you first came here?' asked Cloud as they entered the small town.

'Well, at the points where you can see the Lifestream, it's definitely rushing faster. The locals seem to be acting a bit funny too. Like… almost robotic, mechanical. It's quite strange,' explained Red. 'Nothing else seems to be out of the ordinary. Oh, but, there may be a greater influx of visitors, you can't really tell, however.'

Cloud nodded. 'Okay, so, Vincent, what do you propose we do?'

'I do not have the cells in me the same as you three do. I cannot tell. All I know, is that Mideel is the centre of whatever is happening,' the gunman said quietly.

He paused, and then looked skyward. 'They say it's never night where the Lifestream flows as water…'

Rena's eyes slid toward Vincent.

'Night…' she murmured. Closing her eyes, the view from the airship last night filled her mind. The sweeping black skies…

'Rena,' said Cloud, jolting her out of her daydream. 'You, Sephiroth and I will go down and investigate the Lifestream pool. Okay?' he asked. Rena nodded and looked for Sephiroth.

'…where's Sephiroth?'

The group looked around. The silver-haired SOLDIER was gone.

'Did anyone see him in the fighting?' asked Tifa. Everyone shook their heads. Cid shrugged.

'He's probably gone to hunt down some Ancients or something,' the man said absently, as he looked at the town he hated.

Mideel had done well with rebuilding, since the Lifestream explosion and WEAPON's rampage. Everything was up on cement and wooden stilts. Below the decks, the Lifestream gushed and churned, slapping the sides of the stilts with its eerie green liquid.

To the left of the entrance, up on a cliff that was away from the bustle of the town, were a few houses and an inn. To the right of the entrance was a main marketplace, shops, homes and various other buildings. Up on the other side of the Lifestream was the rebuilt hospital, separated from the town by a wooden bridge.

Cloud and the gang went up the cliff into the inn. The inn was running short of rooms ('You were right, Red. There _must _more tourists here at the moment.') so they were put up three to a room, with four in the last. Cid, Shera and Cait – he didn't necessarily need to sleep, only charge – took the first room; Barrett, Sephiroth and Cloud slept in the second; Yuffie, Rena, Tifa and Vincent in the last.

Barrett looked at Vincent mournfully. 'An' why do _you _get th' room fulla women?' he demanded, earning him a punch in the arm from Tifa.

* * *

Once they had settled and unpacked, Cloud and Rena went out to find Sephiroth.

'When was the last time you saw him?' Cloud asked Rena.

'While you were all busy fighting, I think I saw him standing there, just watching us. I don't know when he actually disappeared, though,' she replied.

They asked the shopkeepers and the locals, but no-one seemed to know. Finally they trekked across the bridge at the far side of the town and entered the hospital. Rena laid a hand on her brother's arm, as he spoke to the elderly doctor and the nurse. It was a horrible time for all them, the last time they'd been here. It was a new building, but it held the same memories.

'Sephiroth? The tall, silver-haired fellow? Why, yes, he came through here not long ago. Gave Nurse Mia here quite a fright with that gigantic sword. Yes, he asked us if we knew where he could find a special kind of doctor.' The doctor leaned closer to Rena and winked. 'I told him I was special enough!'

'…he didn't find that very funny. He said he needed a doctor that had previously worked with Professor Hojo. I told him none of the doctors here had that requirement. He seemed quite disappointed, poor bloke. Shoulders slumped, eyes dulled, looked really down. He thanked us and left. I think he…' the doctor trailed off as he stared through the window.

'Isn't that him, there?'

Rena and Cloud turned to look out the window. Sephiroth was walking past. The pair hurriedly thanked the doctor and opened the door. 'Make sure you stay away from that Mako, son!' called the doctor.

'Sephiroth!' called Rena. The man turned at her voice.

'Rena, Cloud. I was just on my way to the inn,' he explained. Rena raised an eyebrow. 'Where'd you disappear to?' she inquired askance. Sephiroth inclined his head.

'I saw that we were low on Elixirs, so I went to collect some,' he told her, indicating the bag in his hands that Rena hadn't noticed earlier.

He opened it to show her many small bottles filled with sparkling rainbow liquid.

'The doctor says you asked him if there was a doctor who worked with Hojo,' said Cloud. Sephiroth blinked. 'Yes, yes, I suppose I did,' he mumbled. Rena put a hand on his forearm.

'Is there something you want to tell us, Sephiroth?' she asked gently.

The man sighed. 'Don't worry, it's nothing important. I just… every now and then I… need to be checked upon. Hojo was my doctor, all those years – he was the only one who understood my body and my needs. I'm afraid if I go too long without a check-up, something might go wrong.

'His arrogance prevented him from training a successor. When you killed him, everything he knew went to waste. If there's something wrong with the Jenova cells or the Mako, regular doctors won't understand.'

Rena thought for a moment. 'Cloud and I never got check-ups after we got out of captivity. Obviously, we're different to you, but you might be okay. Look, we'll worry about it after we're done with everything that's going to happen, okay?' she told him softly.

The SOLDIER nodded, resigned.

'Then, let's go check out the Lifestream.'

* * *

**AN: **Longer and longer.. it's working!

:D


	32. Chaos Rides The Shadows

The greenish liquid flowed fast from where the trio stood at the edge.

Bubbles and foam surfaced in places where the current was more violent. Its glow lit up the whole area, reflecting faint green auras onto the three.

Rena, peering as she was, could not see anything interesting within the Lifestream. It was one of her rare experiences with the stuff, so she didn't really know what to look for. Sephiroth and Cloud, who had both been _inside _the Lifestream, searched its ripples for a sign of the coming storm.

Ten minutes later, Rena was sitting on a rock a few metres away, hands propped on her knees, holding her face. Cloud had found a sort of makeshift pier; a wide wooden plank that was nailed down into the hard dirt of the shore, extending about four metres into the pool. After gingerly testing its sturdiness, he had sat on it to get a closer view, though still close enough to the shore to save himself if the thing gave out.

Sephiroth hadn't moved.

'Anything yet?' called Rena, bored with the situation. Cloud shook his head, silent. Sephiroth shrugged, blue-green eyes turned aquamarine with the glow of the pool. Rena looked at the clumsy clock tower in the middle of the city. When she saw the time, she blinked. Peering closer, she realized what had surprised her.

It was already 9 o'clock in the evening, but the sky was as bright as noon. Furrowing her brow, she looked skyward. Sure enough, the sun had set long ago and in its place was the pearly full moon, looking rather out of place amidst the azure sky.

Again, the image from the Sierra flashed through her mind, of those black skies littered with tiny lights. What had Vincent said? _They say it's never night where the Lifestream flows as water…_

How do they live with no night? It would drive me mad. I much prefer light to dark, but sheesh, everyone needs darkness sometimes.

Floating back into reality, Rena got to her feet. 'There's nothing here,' she spoke abruptly. 'There's nothing we can do at the moment. Let's go back to the inn. It's, er, getting late,' she said anxiously.

The men looked at the sky, puzzled. When they sighted the moon, their heads whipped backwards to look at the clock tower. Rena shrugged as they looked back at her, shocked. 'Pretty crazy, eh?'

The three of them trekked back to the inn where the whole group was waiting in the main room.

* * *

'Finally!' cried Yuffie. 'We've all had to wait for you three till we could eat. I'm starving!'

Barrett and Red gave Cloud similarly annoyed, hungry glares, whilst Tifa called for chef to bring them their food.

Whilst they all eat, Rena told them about the Lifestream.

'Nothing special. Nothing to see. It's disappointing. And the light! How crazy is this?' she exclaimed. Vincent locked eyes with the SOLDIER and then glanced away.

'Yeah. Must be hell for the town,' said Barrett.

The team finished their meals, and retreated to the common room to talk for awhile.

Shera yawned.

'I don't know about the sky, but I'm going to bed. C'mon, Cid,' said the woman. The couple left the room. Cait bounced after them. Soon after, Tifa, Cloud, Barrett and Yuffie headed up.

The remaining group still sat in the main room.

Vincent looked at Sephiroth.

'What do you propose we do, Sephiroth?' he asked softly. Sephiroth glanced at him and back to the window.

'How would I know? I was dragged here. The Lifestream was our best chance and now that that's failed, what are we meant to do?' the silver-haired man answered.

Rena spoke up. 'So, we know that we've been drawn here. Jenova, the Planet… I admit, I'm pretty lost too. But we have to keep trying. I think we should question the locals. Red said they were acting kind of mechanically. That's got to mean something. What about Nibelheim? After it was burnt down, it was inhabited by all those Shinra employees,' she said slowly.

'Something must've happened to the people here. A whole town can't just suddenly get strange for no reason.' The woman put her hands behind her head. 'Maybe no darkness is bad for you.'

Vincent looked down.

'Darkness does not affect people like you, Rena. I do not mean SOLDIER, either. People who are… not like myself. Not tainted,'

He looked up.

'Did you know that Chaos is partially controlled by a balance between darkness and light?' he asked the fighter. Rena shook her head, puzzled.

The ex-Turk looked down again. 'Chaos is affected by the orbit of the planet. When we are in shadow, when we sleep, renders him one way, and when the sun fills the sky he is another being, almost. Chaos rides the shadows and the rays.

'I'm worried that if he is exposed to too much sunlight it might trigger something.'

Rena grinned. 'Sounds like a camera or something.'

Vincent looked at her unsmilingly. The grin slid from her face. 'Sorry,' she said quickly. 'You're a pretty closed guy, Vincent. Why are you telling us all this?'

The man glanced at the blank-faced Sephiroth and back to Rena.

'I may need help,' he said darkly, as if it was a sin to admit such a thing. 'If Chaos overtakes me or if I start acting dangerously, I can't be around you. It is too risky. If something of that nature happens, you must… I do not know. If it gets horribly bad, you will have to hurt me... yes, Rena–' he said at her exclamation '–it must be done. But I think if it is mild, darkness will sooth his soul. I… I hope.'

Rena looked at the gunner worriedly, but had nothing to say to him. Sephiroth was as vacant as ever. Glaring at his expressionless face, Rena said irritably, 'What's wrong with you? What's with the stone imitation?'

Sephiroth flicked his eyes to her. 'I apologize. I was only half listening to the conversation. I was trying to find a sort of… void in my mind where Hojo used to tell me to find whenever he did experiments on me. He would tell me to find a place in my mind where it is empty of all thoughts.

'When I asked him if he meant to clear my mind of thoughts, he said no, this was different. I was wondering if I could find that place again, I might be able to control my body a little more.' He sighed. 'I don't know.'

Rena slumped, faintly depressed. The journey was going nowhere, everyone seemed to have problems, and she kept getting those cursed flashbacks of the sky from the Sierra. What did they mean?!


	33. Paint The Town

The next day dawned bright and sunny. As it had been all night.

None of the group had slept well. Even behind thick curtains did the cheerful light seep through and keep them awake with the sheer oddity of its existence. Morning saw them tired and irritable. Rena was even more upset at the turn the journey had taken.

'What are we to do today?' she yawned over breakfast. Tifa looked at her blearily and returned to resting her head on Barrett's sizable shoulder. The said man gave Rena a bloodshot death glare and returned to eating his food. Cloud, hair sticking out and up in amazing angles, sighed and looked at his sister.

'I guess we should go check out the locals. Didn't someone say they were acting weird?' he said. Cid nodded. Shera, Cait and Vincent were not present. Sephiroth was leaning his head on his arms, glistening hair falling over to cover his face. Red was snoozing at Cid's feet.

Yuffie walked in, bubbly and bright. 'Hi, guys!' she said loudly. The room groaned collectively and the young girl had to use her awesome ninja skills to dodge a flying sausage. 'Fine!' she squealed, and more sausages were thrown.

Half an hour later, the team was feeling fresher after a shower and a quick exercise. Cait and Vincent joined them, bringing news that Shera had gone to visit a friend and collect gossip from the market. They split up yet again – Tifa, Sephiroth and Vincent went into east Mideel where most of the shops were. Cait, Cid and Barrett decided to scout the west side, where it was mostly residential. Rena, Cloud, Yuffie and Red took to the middle, where a smattering of both shops and homes were, as well as the church and the clock tower.

* * *

'Excuse me, miss. How are you today? My name is Horace, and I'm doing a survey on the society of Mideel…' 

Cloud was doing yet another fake survey to another unsuspecting citizen of Mideel. He had been through hundreds of them, and strangely, every single person had given the same answer – except the obvious foreigners and tourists. The citizens looked normal enough as they walked past, but as soon as he stopped one, their eyes glazed a little and the seemed to listen to him almost absently.

They'd always reply with a brusque 'yes', 'no' or whatever his questions required. Looking at his results, the answer to his first question had been 80 'yes'. Same percentage of 'no's for his second question. Every one of the residents had given the identical answers to each other. It was uncanny.

This meant there was some kind of influence on the people. Was it some sort of hypnosis, or an effect of materia? Was it a mechanical contraption, or a type of drug? Cloud sighed. He wondered if Rena or Yuffie and Red had been having any luck.

* * *

'Roll up! Roll up! Come see the amazing Kisaragi and her strange creature, Nanaki! Watch their mind-blowing acrobatics and magic tricks! How does the Nanaki's tail stay alight? How was Kisaragi bequeathed with such beauty? Please, stay and watch!' 

Yuffie and Red were not doing well. Using a few of her complex ninja exercise routines, Yuffie could put up some pretty good entertainment. But where it had earned her much praise and gifts in other busking sessions, this one saw her hat filled with no more than a few gil. Red knew a few tricks and flips, and also had a curious ability to channel power through his tail-fire to make beautiful light-shows. His skills were unappreciated also by the general public.

'What is wrong with these people?!' whispered Yuffie. 'I've done little shows like this before, and I got heaps of gil!' She looked around as a little girl stopped to watch them, expressionless.

'Hi!' announced Yuffie exuberantly. She then proceeded to do a few cartwheels and flips. When the ninja landed, the girl was gone and Yuffie was none the richer.

'Damnit!'

* * *

Rena stared up at the beautiful stained-glass window of the small church. The window was placed perfectly so that the midday sun would catch through its coloured panes. The effect was glorious. _Although_, Rena thought wryly, _it will always be lit up like this while the Lifestream flows here… _Again the image of the night sky flashed through her mind. Growling, Rena thought she was close to breaking point. 

Every time she thought about the Lifestream, or the never-ending sunshine, that black sky with its twinkling stars would shove itself into her thoughts. Rena had pretty much figured out by now that she somehow had to bring night to Mideel. It seemed like the obscure solution to many problems – Chaos' conclusion to a dormant rampage, the queer mechanical behaviour of Mideel, her own mindstorms…

But one could not exactly just kick the Lifestream out of Mideel, could they? Rena had been playing out various solutions in her head, to no avail. Now, she should just concentrate on Mideel and its people.

The head priest at the front of the church was deep in meditation, and various other priests were going about their business, ignoring the little young woman in the back.

Rena slowed moved up the aisles, looking for everything and nothing. When she reached the front, she stopped in front of the meditating priest. His brown eyes were open and stared almost right into her own, unblinkingly. She stood staring into those eyes for a little while, willing the priest to react. When he did not, she stepped back a little, laying her hand on the hilt of one of her swords.

A nearby priest saw the movement, and went to question her, but stopped when he saw some sort of yellowish fog seep out between her fingers on the silver weapon. The fog swirled for a few seconds before dispersing into the sweet-smelling air. He saw her lips move for a moment, and then the air sort of… _shifted _between her and the head priest.

He saw her eyelids flutter and close for the briefest second, before she opened them and stared again at the priest, removing her hand from the weapon at her waist. She then retreated to one of the benches and sat, silent and unmoving.

The priest shook his head and returned to his work.

Rena pondered what she had just learned by casting Sense on the head priest. She had used the same Sense materia as the one that had predicted the coming storm. It seemed to have extra ability. With this spell, it had told her the priest was not real.

Not real? What was that supposed to mean? It could be many things. Perhaps his body was inhabited by another. Maybe his mind was altered like so many of the town's were. Rena was beginning to hate riddles and enigmatic messages. How did Vincent, King of Cryptics himself, manage it?

Rena decided that the best belief was the one to think that the priest was merely some sort of conduit for a greater power. It did not occur to Rena that the sort of magic controlling Mideel came from anything else other than a single person. It just seemed that that was the only possible answer. A sole being was the creator of such confusion. It made sense to her when everything else did not.

But who, why, where and how? Rena shoved the endless fragments of theories out of her mind and stood. She should go get some different opinions.

* * *

**AN: **Well, well, well.

Who is this mystery person who is controlling the residents of Mideel? Ho, ho, ho. You'll just have to keep reading..

:B


End file.
